Beauty and the Beast
by Creature of the Timbers
Summary: What happens when Jack finds a myserious catgirl? Starts before Barbossa took the Pearl and goes through the PotC movie
1. Default Chapter

Disclaimer: I do not own PotC or any of its characters I'm just a silly fan girl who has an obsession for Captain Jack Sparrow. Neko on the other hand is mine and if you use her with out my consent I will send flying purple space monkeys to tickle you in your sleep!  
  
Summery: This starts out before the Pearl was taken from Jack and goes through the PotC movie. As for the origin of Neko she is one of the vary first mutants ever, and no this is NOT an X-men crossover. Any further questions please e-mail them to me. Arigato.  
  
Neko's POV. She sat in the tiny cage her captors had put her in as she listed to the cannon fire above. Pirates.and where there were pirates, death fallowed. She smiled; she had given up hope of salvation long ago and now quietly waited for death. She fluffed her sorry looking thin fur and curled her tail around her tiny, sickly frame. She lay her head on her hands and uttered curses to her family before closing her eyes and giving into the blissful darkness that awaited her, her last hope was that her next life would be better.  
  
Jack's POV Captain Jack Sparrow smiled as he watched his crew load the bounty from one ship to the other. The ship they had just taken was oriental in origin and held several items Jack deemed useful, such as weapons, jewels and silks. It also held several exotic animals, most of them big cats, and most of them dead.  
  
Pintel and Ragetti where busy tossing the dead animals overboard when they called Jack over, "Captain! We got a live one!" yelled Pintel "Aye, and she be a strange one." Ragetti said.  
  
Jack, curios to see what they found swaggered over, peered into the cage, and nearly fell over. At first glace she could almost be mistaken as a leopard, but the face was far too human-like. In fact the face was human despite the fact that it had black stripes above and below each eye, and was dusted in golden brown fur.  
  
Looking her over further he saw that her whole body was covered in fur, dotted with black/brown spots. Her arms and legs ended in hands and feet instead of paws and were tipped in wicked claws. Her head was toped with scraggily black hair, her ears where elongated and tipped with black and out of her back came a tail, long and covered in fur as well.  
  
But the more he got over how odd she looked the more he saw how sad she looked. Her fur, though a lovely golden color, was sickly thin, missing in patches, and matted with what smelled like urine and feces, most likely her own. She was so thin that she looked more like a fur covered skeleton then humanoid.  
  
He was uncertain if she truly was alive when she cracked an eye open and peered out at him. The eye was crystal blue; the pupil a little slit like a cat, and held the deepest hopelessness he had ever seen. Before he could study it further she sighed and slipped back into unconsciousness.  
  
He grabbed the cage and started heading back to his ship, the Black Pearl. He was cornered by Barbossa his first mate.  
  
"Captain, what are you planning on doing with that sorry beast?"  
  
"I'm takin' her aboard and fix 'er up. Think she fetch a good price."  
  
Barbossa nods "Aye Captain."  
  
Jack walked on to the Pearl and headed for his cabin. The moment he entered the tiny space with her he regretted it. Her smell was so foul that it almost made him gag. "Alrighty lass, looks like our first task is to get ye clean, savvy?"  
  
He took her out on deck and removed her from the cage; he tossed the cage overboard seeing no use for it. He then grabbed a basin of clean water and began scrubbing her fur clean of the filth. Every so often her tail would twitch but other then that she remained still and unconscious the whole time. After she was clean he was able to study her more closely.  
  
She was tiny, probably no more then 4' 6" and the most, and obviously oriental as well. She fur was longer then he first thought and silky to the touch. She was bone thin and her face sunken but it was easy to see that, in good health she would be beautiful.  
  
He ran a hand through her silky fur again and sighed. "Well lassie, what shall I do with a treasure like ye?"  
  
As though in response to his words, her eyes snapped open. 


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: I know it's been a very long time, but here is chapter two of the story! I know I should update more, but life sucks. So with out further ado here we go.

She could hear someone talking, male, his voice accented in a strange way. He smelled of hard leather, gun powder, and rum. But mostly he smelled of the sea. For somewhere in her clouded mind she felt him stroke her thin fur. Her tail twitched slightly as his touch and voice brought her back to consciousness. Then he stroked her again, and so curious she was about this man that she opened her eyes.

She saw the shock on his face as her golden eyes open and focus on him. He was a tall man; some might say he was handsome, though his weathered appearance didn't particularly appeal to her. She sat up slowly, squinting as her eyes slowly adjusted to the bright open air.

By the time she made it to sit on her haunches, Jack had recovered from his shock enough to kneel beside her and spoke in slow, gentle tones.

" 'Ello there, cat-lady, you sure are a strange one. Who are you? What were you doing on that ship?"

She tilted her head as she contemplated his words. Oh she understood him clearly, her father had been a diplomat and she has spent a fair amount of time in England. It had been a while since she used English, but she spook as clear as her parched and raw throat and lips would allow.

"They call me Neko, parents sold me to slavers, they take me to Americas. Who you? Master?"

Jack was once again stunned, not only was she a strange thing, but to be a slave and treated in such a way appalled him. Sure she looked part cat, and for all anyone knew, was, but she was not an animal.

"No lass, but I am a Captain." He stood and gave a colorful bow. "Captain Jack Sparrow, at your service. And this here is me ship, the Black Pearl. And as long as you're on my ship, you are a part of my crew, little different then any other man under my command."

She looked up at him skeptically. There was something about this man that just didn't make since to her. This was his ship, but she was not his slave. She would be a member of the crew, not a pet. But pirate's where loathsome, evil men who killed without mercy and took everything for themselves…right?

Her ears and tail twitch and she contemplated this strange puzzle of this man, this Jack Sparrow. He wanted something from her, she knew it, now the question was what?

Without much warning, he stood up. The movement startled her enough that she jumped and swung her claws at him. Of course her movements where so slow from her weakened state, the he was able to easily dodge it.

He put his hands out in front of him. "Easy there love, no need for that, ol' Jack's not gonna hurt ya. What say we get you some cloths and some food?"

She looked at him for a long moment, still crouched and ready to attack, but the thought of food filled her starved mind and she nods. He extended a hand to her, and carefully, she took it. When she was pulled to her feet, the rush of blood through her starved and weakened body sent her world spinning. She swayed heavily for a moment, then her eyes rolled back and she once again fell into a world of darkness.

Now to reply to some of my lovely reviewer!

**Plateado**- Thanks, actually this idea came from an old RP that me and my friend LadyAngelDevi did. Neko is actually a spin on a really old character of mine, Kohaku, and the thought of her meeting the good Captain was just to fun to pass up.

**Elendil**** Star-Lover**- Thanks for pointing that out, I never caught it. Guess that's why I should edit better huh?

**Kumba**- Lets hear it for the cat people! There's really not enough of them are there?

**Sifra**** and CC**- look, an update! I promise it won't be another 4 year for the next one.


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